Football and fishing top of mind for Michael Wakefield of the Redblacks

As much as Michael Wakefield is looking to make an impact on the football field this year, he’s also hoping to catch some fish.

The 24-year-old, 270-pound Ottawa Redblacks defensive lineman, who looks as if he’s going to be a starters in Thursday’s Canadian Football League season-opener against the Saskatchewan Roughriders, is a long-time fisherman. He’s casting about for advice on fishing hotspots in the national capital region.

Wakefield got started fishing, mostly catching bass, when he was four or five years old and living in Valdosta, Ga.

“My mom used to get mad because my dad would take me out fishing,” he said. “I really enjoy it. It’s a way to get a lot of stuff off your mind.”

On the football field, Wakefield, who had four tackles last season, is hoping for big things in 2018. At Florida International University, he produced 17 1/2 sacks, 35 1/2 tackles for loss and eight forced fumbles.

“It’s my second year and I’m starting to get comfortable with the CFL. I’m feeling good,” he said. “Last year, I was still feeling my way around. The yard off the ball, I’m still getting used to that. But I’m more relaxed when I’m out there. I do whatever it takes to get the job done. I can get after the quarterback, but I can play the run as well.”

Redblacks head coach Rick Campbell likes what he sees from the defensive lineman.

“He’s getting better,” Campbell said. “We like him, he’s an active guy, he uses his hands well, he can be disruptive. That’s really what you want with defensive linemen is for them to be disruptive. What I mean by that is guys who play on the other side of the line of scrimmage a lot, whether it’s a run or pass play.”

In the off-season, Wakefield helped out with his father’s commercial cleaning business. He also was able to base his training specifically around playing defensive tackle.

“Last year, I didn’t know if would be a defensive end or defensive tackle,” he said. “This year, I added some weight and got stronger.”

Wakefield is feeling at home in the city, too.

“I love Ottawa, it’s the biggest small city I’ve ever been in,” he said.

LINING UP: It’s looking more and more like rookie Mark Korte will start at left guard for the Redblacks on Thursday. While SirVincent Rogers has remained at left tackle during first-team reps, Alex Mateas has been at centre, Jon Gott has been at right guard and Evan Johnson has been playing right tackle. As for the status Nolan MacMillan, who is still on the road back from injury, Campbell said: “I’ve said in the past that someone is playing and they didn’t … and vice versa. So Nolan is definitely not ruled out. Obviously he would have to practise (Tuesday) to get going.”

HE’S STILL GOTT IT: Jon Gott, who has played centre most of his time with the Redblacks, with some time at left guard last year, said it wasn’t a big deal to switch positions. “Earlier in my career, they had me rotating around. It’s only the past few years of my career (that) I’ve just been at one position. It keeps me on my toes.” Going into his 10th CFL season, Gott said Redblacks offensive linemen have been able to adapt. “We’ve been around each other for the past two years, so to be put somewhere else … If I’m playing beside Evan or if I go to left guard and play beside SV (Rogers), it’s not a big deal.” Trying to stop the tough Roughriders defence will be a challenge. In his Saskatchewan debut in a 27-19 win over Toronto, Charleston Hughes, the former Calgary Stampeder, had three sacks. “They’ve got some great players,” Gott said. “They’ve got Willie Jefferson, they’ve got Zack Evans, they’ve got Charleston Hughes. They just fly around and make plays. Watching that Toronto game, they terrorized (Argos quarterback) Ricky Ray, so we have to give Trevor (Harris, Redblacks quarterback) time to throw.”

THE GM SPEAKS: Asked how he felt about the 2018 Redblacks, compared to last season, general manager Marcel Desjardins said: “We should be able to start from a better place than last year just because of the continuity we have. The O-line is a bit of a question mark, but I feel good about that. I feel good about Trevor having one year as the starter under his belt. Defensively, we made a lot of changes for a reason. I think that will bode not only for what they do defensively, but the tone it sets for the team as a whole and hopefully it creates a lot more turnovers.” Talking about Harris, who is a full participant in practice this week after injuring his left knee/ankle nearly 2 1/2 weeks ago in a pre-season game against the Montreal Alouettes, Desjardins said: “It looked scary at first, but it’s obviously comforting (that he is back so quickly). He may not be 100 per cent, but he’s certainly good enough to be practising and we anticipate he’ll be in a good place come Thursday.”

THE END AROUND: It looks as if Noel Thomas Jr. will start on Thursday, giving the Redblacks four Americans lined up at receiver. “He’s a good player,” Campbell said. “He shows a lot of promise. Obviously that has to translate to regular-season games. The thing I liked about him all the way back to mini-camp is he’s a guy who makes tough catches. A lot of guys can make the routine catch, the catches they’re supposed to make. When a football is a 50-50 ball with the defensive back there or the ball’s not placed exactly right, he’s a guy that has a good knack for making an adjustment to it. You need some guys at receiver to step up and make a terrific catch for you. He’s definitely a guy who can do that.” … Thursday’s home-opener kicks off at 7:30 p.m.

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